Your Experiance With Impressive Bred Horses?

Question

I was talking to my trainer, and have heard some of her opinions on Impressive bred horses... She included that they were hard headed, and only good for halter...But basicly she just hates their temperment... Do you guys have a different opinion or do you agree?

Answer 1

I sold my impressive bred APHA mare last summer, she was 5.  Not only was she incredibly easy to train, she won in halter (grand champion/reserve grand champion many time!), showmanship, hunt seat, equitation, discipline on the rail, western pleasure, horsemanship and trail.  She also loved trail riding.  Her new owner is a 10 year old girl who is doing very well on her.  I have worked with a few other Impressive bred horses as well and haven't had any problems with training any of them. They have gone into the show ring in different disciplines no problem.  They are smart horses, granted if they are fed up like a halter horse, on high starch feeds they are going to be harder to handle, but what horse wouldn't be??  I see no problem with Impressive bred horses.

Answer 2

agree..

Answer 3

I've seen horses that are very high percentage Impressive (meaning, he's only a generation or two back, or on their pedigree multiple times) be a little bit on the tough side.  Impressive had some amazing pleasure and halter offspring, but I think it also has to do with what mares he was bred to.  If you're looking at a horse that is by an Impressive bred stud that was out of a halter bred mare, I'd say....ummm...might be a little tough (halter horses typically are), but I've seen some Impressive x pleasure mares that were amazing, and great minded.  You have to base your opinions off the horse you're looking at, each one can be different.

Invitation Only is known for being a little tough, but I've got an Invitation Only bred gelding out of a super quiet Sonny Dee Bar bred mare, and he's really mellow and easy going.

So, basically, Impressive can be good or bad, depending on the mare.  It just stinks that he introduced HYPP into the AQHA world.

Answer 4

my mare (Chinook) has impressive in her.

she is quite a hot head, but will do ANYTHING i ask her too. she gets frustrated and dosen't like to stand, but has a sharp mind. she catches on fast, i can do anything from trick ride to dressage on her. she can be stubborn, but is very compassionate and will follow me around the barn grounds.

alltogether, she is a good horse but NOT for a beginner. if a rider gets on her with a bad seat or wrong cues, she gets very upset and will just stand by the gate.

i also have a younger, calmer QH and i perfer to ride Chinook  any day. she moves very nicely and responds perfectly to me

the one thing i have noticed is she has sore hips, and kicks a little when i hang off her butt or ride double, preventing me from doing back tricks, but other than that, works perfectly!

Answer 5

I agree completely. Impressive bred horses are hard headed, sometimes more than Boom Bar horses (once you get over their hardheadness Boom Bar make good horses), cold backed majorly. Now there are some  Impressive bred horses that aren't too bad, but I personally haven't seen a lot. I know a guy who has a Impressive bred paint mare, he tried to get on her for costume contest, she bucked so hard he went sailling, it was kinda funny

Answer 6

I have a horse with Impressive in his bloodline.  I love him.  He has a lot of cow in him and we rope, Pen and cut off him.  Occasionally, he throws his head when he doesn't want to do something, and my husband always says "that is the Impressive in him".

Answer 7

I bought an Impressive HYPP horse in a few months ago.  He is 10 years old, 16++hh and every bit of 1300 pounds.  He is the biggest teddy bear we own.  My plans for him are western pleasure and of course halter although he belongs to my husband.  We are working through some issues with his weight and feet but I need a cattle prod to get him moving.  Apparently, he was trained for cutting and reining but the trainer didn't recommend that type of work for him so he was stuck out in the pasture for 7 years.  We bought him from a now friend of ours that bought him last year for his teenage daughter but she lost interest and time to boys and working.  We feed him strategy and timothy and are very intuitive to what other stuff he is fed and exercise him regularly with alot of extended trotting.  We have not had any issues with his HYPP.  Impressive is 4 generations back on his papers.

Answer 8

The primary concern with Impressive bred horses is HYPP status...not behavior.

Too many beloved, well behaved, trusted horses have collapsed under the disease for them to be a bad, aggressive line.  

Think about it.  If they were rotten, would HYPP have become so prolific?

Answer 9

I wish the poor horse had never existed.

(HYPP and all that jazz.)

I still don't understand why the AQHA doesn't require testing for all potential registrants...and until they do, it's absolutely fine with me if his lines die out.

Answer 10

I have a direct-bred Impressive gelding. He's 12 now and the most BOMB PROOF horse you'll ever get on. He never forgets ANYTHING you teach him and he doesn't have a temper at all. He's a little hot if anything but always well-behaved. He's VERY cowy and super athletic. I barrel race on him and he is still sound-minded. I think that is the largest test on any horse! I can understand your fear in getting a bad horse but I've gotta say my horse has the most heart and intelligence of any horse I've ever been on (which is a lot of horses!) I think it's like anything else, there will always be exceptions to "the rule".

Answer 11

I have impressive bred horses and have for over 25 years. However, I do not have any that are n/h or h/h. They are all n/n. I have had a few hypp horses and will not own one again. I breed and show. My old horse was a son of impressive and died last year at the age of 25. He did everything I ever asked of him. I continue to breed within those bloodlines as well as many foundation lines. I have over 60 horses. Everyone relates Impressive to halter horses as he produced many pretty ones. However, Impressive himself wasbred to be a racehorse and was by Lucky Bars by Three Bars. I have found that many of my horses are good natured but can tend to be a little hot. We have shown them in halter, hunt seat, western pleasure and trail.  I have also sold babies that have barrel raced, roped and recently one for bull dogging. Sometimes hard headed gets mistaken for high energy. The only thing I would recommend is making sure the horse is not n/h or h/h.

Answer 12

We have an 18 y/o impressive gelding and he's stubborn and grouchy most of the time BUT would never harm a soul.  He's done everything from western pleasure to dressage and the last 7 years H/J winning flats and jumping classes in every show he's been in.  He does tend to think that HE knows everything and please don't bother him with extra training but otherwise, he's a wonderful horse.  We have a little girl "he's training" right now leasing him and he's a little tough on her but like I said, he wouldn't hurt her -just thinks he knows it all.  I definitely wouldn't consider an inexperienced rider for him, though -because of his "know it all attitude".

Answer 13

I have  had good and bad.  Bad was an appy mare that was HYPP N/H.  The only problem was she was a B****.  I had rode this mare consistently and extremely hard, and never once had an incident with HYPP, and I don't believe the owners ever had any problems with it.  Than my friend has a couple of impressive bred horses, and they are the sweetest, most easiest horses in the world to break!  There was no buck in them, or rear, they were just so easy to break.  The first ride was like they had been doing it forever.  It is definently personnal opinion, but while I love the Smart Chic Olena line, I have come into some real *******.  So, bad stuff is in everyline.  I think you can't necessarily condemn a  horse based on its bloodlines attitude and demeanor wise.  It is definently personal opinion:)

Answer 14

My mother used to have an Impressive bred horse, he was very sweet and one of the greatest horses we've had. Unfortunately, as with many of these horses, he had a heart attack. He was 12.

Another girl I know had one. He was 14. She used him for gymkhana, every single leadliner used him, and a few of the girls running 10 & under. Anybody could ride him and he was a great kids horse. Unfortunately, he also had a heart attack. He died right as the girl was getting ready to run barrels- broke her leg.

In the experiences I've had with Impressive horses, I like them. But I will never own one.

Answer 15

You could say I've had a bad and a good incident with this breed. A couple years ago we had a Special Effort mare, who went back to Impressive. She was smooth, fun, and easy to ride. More than you could ask for. The thing is, you have to make sure these horses are tested because back in the day horse breeders imbred so much that a disease was formed, known as HYPP. This horse was never tested so at appx. age 4 or so, she had a heart attack and died.

On the other hand, I have a 3 year old gelding who goes back to Dash for Cash and Impressive, who is totally stubborn when riding him. When he's finished, HE'S FINISHED. He'll lock his head, rear, you name it. He's one of the prettiest things I've seen, 16 hands, light sorrel w/ white throughout the body & with flaxen mane and tale, but I guess looks don't mean c**p to him.

Answer 16

I agree... that horse was bred for halter, and look at the horrid gene it carried.  Google it, and read.  Sad. Quarterhorse+Impressive+HYPP

I have a friend who had an Impressive mare.... horrid temperament, and likely because with that gene is muscle pain... unrelenting muscle pain.    Don't buy one.

Answer 17

My first horse was an Impressive bred mare.  She was a psycho.  She hates people in her stall, hates people being near her.  Training was a nightmare.  Every single time I got on her for months she bucked.  She finally settled down some under saddle, but the personality remains the same.  I sold her a few months ago.  I hear she's still an enormous brat.  Loves to say, "Nope.  Not gonna.  Make me."

And I agree with Lusitano - HYPP and all - that horse should never have been bred in the first place.